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Signature to Receive Tony for Regional Theater

By Patrick Healy April 28, 2014 2:49 pmApril 28, 2014 2:49 pm

Photo

James Houghton, the founder of the Signature Theater.Credit Joshua Bright for The New York Times

Signature Theater will become the first New York City theater company to receive the noncompetitive Tony Award recognizing a regional American theater, the Tony Awards Administration Committee announced on Monday.

Before this year theaters in the five boroughs were ineligible for the annual award, which was created to honor theaters that did outstanding work outside of the unofficial industry capital of New York City; the Tony was first presented in 1976 to Arena Stage in Washington. But last June the administration committee changed the rules for the regional theater Tony to widen the pool of candidates and give Off Broadway and Off Off Broadway companies a shot at the recognition, which can help with fund-raising and publicity. (The regional theater Tony was given last year to Huntington Theater Company in Boston.) Non-Broadway productions remain ineligible for Tonys; only productions that run in Broadway’s 40 theaters are eligible for competitive Tony Awards.

Signature has been producing eight to 10 shows a year lately at its new home, the Pershing Square Signature Center, which has three stages and is located a few blocks west of the Broadway theater district in Manhattan. Founded in 1991 by its artistic director, James Houghton, Signature is best known for focusing on the works of a single playwright each season and keeping ticket prices relatively low — $25 for all seats during the initial runs of shows — with financial support from corporations and others. Recent Signature productions have included the critically praised “Appropriate” by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins and “The Old Friends” by Horton Foote.

The Tony Award nominations will be announced on Tuesday at 8:30 a.m.; the ceremony is June 8.